The colt was coming off a 17-length defeat in the Fountain of Youth Stakes (G2) and his trainer saddled him and ran off to the airport to catch a flight. But it did not stop Adriano from bouncing back with a sharp score in Saturday’s $500,000 Lane’s End Stakes (G2) at Turfway Park.

Graham Motion saddled his three-year-old colt before rushing off to catch a flight at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, missing the winners circle celebration.

The colt tracked the early pace while four wide, went after the lead with three furlongs to go, took over approaching the stretch, and drew clear to win by 2 ½ lengths under jockey Edgar Prado.

The son of A.P. Indy paid $11.60 for the win, his third victory from seven career starts. His first two wins both came on turf. The colt stopped the timer in 1:50.20 for the nine furlongs.

"I wanted to be in a tracking position, and I was happy almost every step of the way," said Prado. "He put me in a great position at the eighth pole and every time I called on him, he responded."

Motion did not consider Adriano a Kentucky Derby candidate, but may reconsider after his performance on Saturday.

“I think we all agree that he's probably more of a turf horse, but the Lexington (April 19 at Keeneland) is something we will definitely consider,” Motion said. “The horse showed that on his day he can be brilliant. I thought another key was that he was very good in the paddock. He's very hot-blooded. In the Fountain of Youth, he kind of fell apart that day. The fact that he was good today made a big difference."

Lukewarm favorite Halo Najib could not match strides in the stretch with the winner and settled for second. The $2 exacta returned $46.80.

"My horse ran his race," said Halo Najib's trainer, Dale Romans. "He had a little rough trip around the turn, but I was real pleased with his effort."

The $100,000 Rushaway Stakes came down to a photo finish, with Big Glen ($8.40) getting his neck in front of runner up Miner’s Claim.

Trained by Frank Brothers and ridden to victory by Rene Douglas, the son of Cactus Ridge won his fourth race from seven career starts.

Big Glen is not nominated to the Triple Crown.

The Derby Trail Continues. There are four stakes for three year olds next Saturday that could produce Kentucky Derby contenders:

Saturday March 29 Three-Year-Old Stakes

Palm Beach Stakes, Gulfstream, 1 1/8 M Turf
San Miguel Stakes, Santa Anita, 6 Furlongs
Florida Derby, Gulfstream, 1 1/8 M
UAE Derby, Nad al Sheba, 1 1/8 M

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Weekly horse racing report is courtesy of Mike Dempsey at Turfnsport.com. Mike has been handicapping races for three decades and runs free horse handicapping contests from his site every week. His exclusive Pointspread.com article appears here Mondays or Tuesdays.